Thornberry wary of bill's success

Posted: Saturday, September 29, 2001

Kay Ledbetterkledbetter@amarillonet.com

DAWN - Proposed amendments to the House version of the farm bill could doom it and area producers along with it, U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Clarendon, said at the open house of the Top of Texas cotton gin north of Dawn on Friday.

Thornberry said the farm bill will come up for consideration Wednesday and the consensus of most agriculture groups is that it is a good program and now is the time to strike in getting in moving forward.

"The countercyclical payments that in effect put a floor on the payments will be the most beneficial to our area farmers," he said.

"We were very fortunate to get the $79 billion from surplus on top of the $161 billion Farm Bill spending allowed for the 10-year period," Thornberry said.

The problem is, the surplus situation has changed dramatically and the country's situation has changed, Thornberry said.

Now, in addition to the farmers who were struggling to survive and needed assistance, there will be many other businesses needing help to survive.

The surplus $79 billion is in jeopardy, he said. If the bill passes through both the House and Senate before Christmas, Thornberry said agriculture is more likely to keep the surplus money.

If the House passes the bill Wednesday, it will put more pressure on the Senate to take it under consideration this year, Thornberry said.

One problem is expected in Wednesday's debate, he said. An amendment is being proposed that would take $2 billion a year out of the traditional farm payments and put that money into more conservation programs.

Thornberry said conservation funding already has been increased by 75 percent in the farm bill, and to pull the additional money away would essentially kill the bill.

"If that amendment passes, the farm bill is history. (U.S. Rep. Larry Combest, R-Lubbock) will pull it, and we'll have great difficulty in getting a farm bill that will enable us to make a living," Thornberry said.

He encouraged all the farmers present at the cotton gin opening to contact anyone and everyone they know who can lobby against the conservation amendment.

"We've been very fortunate we've had the leadership in the ag committees that we have from our neck of the woods," Thornberry said.

If the farm bill is passed as currently constructed by the House ag committee, it will be something area farmers can live with, he said.

"I'm convinced if you have a reasonable chance to earn a living, our producers can make it work," he said.

Thornberry addressed shortly the recent tragedy that has put the nation in a different light the past two weeks, saying one of the best parts about it all has been how the country has come together.

"We have to be in this thing for the long haul," Thornberry said. "And we have to realize we will be attacked again.

"We don't know when or where, but there's one thing we know about these people: They will keep coming back. We have to go after them and stop them," he said.

He said there is a concern that the terrorists could strike the food supply, and it is important, now more than ever, to maintain the integrity and confidence in the nation's food and water supply.